DIAPER BAGGIE SCANDAL: THE POOP INVESTIGATES!

It is perhaps the greatest dilemma any new parent has to face: Should I buy the diaper baggies with the cute little duck dispenser, or save a little money and purchase equally functional bags that are meant for dogs?

Peter Hartlaub/Chronicle

Our hidden camera photo reveals … a bargain!

The Poop has investigated further, and the results may shock you. Not only are the meant-for-humans baggies at major retail superstores nearly identical to the ones in the pet section, but they can cost more than twice as much money. (Plus the doggy baggies have a nice sandlewood scent that most daddies will find superior to the flowery scent on the baby baggies.)

It’s the scandal that the diaper baggie industry doesn’t want you to know about. Here are our findings:

1. At Target, the for-humans baggies cost $2.99 for a duck dispenser and 24 baggies — a unit cost of more than 12 cents. The replacement baggies are $2.99 for 36, about 8 cents per unit.

2. The dog baggies cost $2.99 for 50 bags, and have refills priced at $6.99 for 150, which is 4.5 cents per unit.

That may not seem like much, but if your child defecates a lot, and isn’t potty trained for three years, you could end up throwing away more than $100 just to say you didn’t fill your Diaper Genie with bags meant for animals. (This blog is only 12 hours old, and we’re already smelling a Pulitzer.)

When I started buying dog baggies last year, the product came in rolls, and actually fit in the duck dispenser. Now they’re packaged sort of like toilet seat protectors in public restrooms. And the makers of the Doggy Scoop Bags have stenciled little white bones to the front — adding to the neglecting-my-child stigma you’ll feel around other parents if you pull one out at the park.